Chapter 10: The Great Splash
The Mass Exodus
A sound like a four-million-person collective pop echoed across the world. In the blink of an eye, the plazas of Loguetown, the decks of Marine warships, and the crowded bars of Sabaody suddenly felt very, very empty.
On the Thousand Sunny, Sanji was halfway through a sentence when he realized the entire group of "D-guessers" standing on the nearby shore had vanished into thin air.
"They're... they're really gone," Nami whispered, her eyes wide as she clutched her Berrys. "Four million people. Just... yoinked."
The Live Broadcast: 'Calm Belt Chaos'
The golden screen didn't move to the next rank. Instead, it split into a thousand tiny sub-windows, creating a mosaic of absolute, unmitigated disaster.
[System: Live Feed — The Price of Guesswork]
[Location: The Calm Belt — Sector 7 through 12]
The world watched in morbid fascination. Four million people—pirates, low-ranking Marines, and overconfident civilians—were suddenly treading water in the flattest, most terrifying ocean on earth. There was no wind. No waves. Only the sound of millions of people splashing and screaming.
In one window, a Marine Captain was trying to maintain order. "Form a perimeter! Use your rifles to—"
CRUNCH. A Sea King the size of a mountain rose silently behind him, its eye alone larger than a Marine galley. The Captain disappeared into a massive maw, and the window turned into a "Static" screen with a "User Deleted" sign.
> [Buggy]: "AIEEEE! I KNEW IT! I KULLED IT! My flashy instincts saved me! Look at those poor idiots! They're being used as appetizers for the big fish!"
> [Rocks D. Xebec]: "Gurarara! Look at them crawl! It's like watching ants in a bathtub. Hey, Roger, look at that Marine in Window #402. He's trying to punch a Sea King with a wooden oar! That's the spirit!"
> [Gol D. Roger]: "Rocks, you're a monster. But... bwahaha! That kid with the oar actually has some decent form! If he survives an hour, I'm impressed!"
>
The Ghostly Penalty
Suddenly, the chat screen flickered. A new set of names turned a sickly, translucent grey.
[System Notice: The Departed are not exempt from the Law of the Sovereign.]
[Penalty for Incorrect Ghosts: 1 Hour of 'The Void of Boredom'.]
> [Shiki the Golden Lion]: "The Void of what? Wait—why is everything turning white? ROGER! WHITEBEARD! I CAN'T HEAR MY OWN VOIC—"
>
Shiki's name vanished from the chat list.
> [Edward Newgate]: "Gurarara! Finally, some peace and quiet. Shiki always did talk too much for a man with steering wheels in his head."
>
The "Sparkle-Princess" Aftermath
Back on Onigashima, the atmosphere was a mix of a funeral and a comedy club. Queen was literally rolling on the floor, his mechanical arm pounding the stone tiles.
"SPARKLE-PRINCESS!" Queen choked out, tears of oil leaking from his eyes. "KING! I'M GOING TO RENAME THE ENTIRE SHIP THE 'S.S. SPARKLE-PRINCESS'!"
King didn't move. A small, blue flame began to flicker on his shoulder—a sign of extreme, homicidal irritation. "Queen. The next time we duel, I am not using my sword. I am going to melt your Jukebox into a puddle of scrap metal."
> [Kaido]: "SHUT UP, BOTH OF YOU! I'm trying to watch the Sea Kings eat! It's relaxing!"
>
The World's Terror
In Marineford, Sengoku was staring at a window showing three of his Vice-Admirals currently trying to ride a Sea King like a surfboard to stay out of the water.
"This is a disaster," Sengoku whispered. "If the punishments get worse... if the System starts taking lifespans or Devil Fruit powers... nobody will dare to answer. We'll be at the mercy of the lucky and the insane."
"Or the Straw Hats," Garp noted, pointing at the screen.
Luffy was currently trying to bite his new Sovereign Coin to see if it was made of chocolate. Chopper was crying and hugging Luffy's leg, terrified for the people in the Calm Belt but thrilled to be alive.
The System Speaks
The "Calm Belt Mosaic" faded away, replaced once again by the deep, obsidian black and crimson flame of Rank 49.
[System: The Hour of Punishment has concluded for the Living. (The Survivors have been returned to their original locations, mostly wet and traumatized.)]
[Status: Preparing the Lottery for Rank 49: King the Conflagration.]
[Notice: From this point forward, Penalties will scale based on the 'Weight' of the Rank.]
[Possible Penalties: Lifespan Reduction (1-5 years), Temporary Loss of Haki, Mandatory 'Truth Serum' Chat Participation, or 'The Final Sleep'.]
> [Donquixote Doflamingo]: "Fuffuffuffu! The stakes are finally getting interesting. A game where you bet your soul for a coin... How very divine."
>
The golden light around King's name began to spin. The world leaned in, silent and terrified. If a plague-doctor got a "Viral Core," what would a "God of Fire" receive?